


Torrential Showers

by Jadeleaf



Category: Psycho-Pass
Genre: F/M, One Shot, Post-Season/Series 03
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 18:08:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25220647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jadeleaf/pseuds/Jadeleaf
Summary: Ginoza invites Akane out for the day.  Luckily they won't let the weather stop them.
Relationships: Ginoza Nobuchika/Tsunemori Akane
Comments: 13
Kudos: 40





	Torrential Showers

**Author's Note:**

> This was supposed to be short and platonic... it kinda got away from me.

Akane stood at the edge of the PSB building, with a drone at her side. It was raining heavily, with large drops of water thundering against the glass and rushing down in torrents. Rain splashed onto the ground, barely bouncing off before the next drop arrived, making the pavement appear glassy.

“There is a ten percent chance of rain easing before six this evening,” the artificial voice announced far too cheerfully from her communicator. 

Akane sighed, her mood feeling as dark grey as the clouds despite her much lighter hue. Another glance at the sky confirmed the forecast was most-likely correct. There wasn’t even a patch of brightness, just a blanket of dark clouds. She was so fixated on the sky, that Akane completely missed the dark car silently pulling up on the other side of the barriers. It was only when her vision was obscured by a black umbrella, that she jerked back to the present.

Ginoza patiently stood just outside the entrance, his smile widening a little when her eyes met his. Only a couple months had passed since her release, and Akane had barely spoken more than a few words to him. They always seemed to be busy at different times, so when he said he would be in the area for a couple days, Akane managed to persuade him to request a day off to spend with her.

Holding out his left hand to show his identification to the drone, Ginoza transferred authority over Akane’s actions to himself (Shimotsuki had grudgingly given her approval). It sped away without comment. Akane only made eye-contact again with Ginoza when it was completely out of sight.

“Thanks again for this.”

He chuckled, shifting the umbrella so that it covered her as she stepped out. “Hanashiro was all too happy to approve it. Something about fostering better relations.” He glanced at Akane, and shrugged his shoulders. “She’s certain you’ll be exonerated eventually.”

Although Akane wasn’t quite as confident, she did find Frederica’s belief in her reassuring. No matter the reason, Akane was glad to be spending some quiet time with Ginoza. It had been far too long.

He followed her around to the passenger side and kept her sheltered while she closed the door. Sitting in the driver’s seat, he shook out the umbrella before depositing it in the back. Water puddled on the fake-leather rear seats. Akane looked out the window in the hope the rain might miraculously ease.

“What now?”

Ginoza looked as if he was trying to hold back a smile. 

“I have an idea what we can do.”

“Oh?”

However, he kept quiet. Akane puffed out her cheeks and let out a huff as she turned to the misted window, earning a laugh. Any negative feelings drained away at the sound. The lights of the vehicle switched on and the auto-pilot took over, taking them towards their mysterious destination.

“How are you adjusting?”

“Slowly,” she admitted. “Between Bureau Chief Homura and Division One, I think Shimotsuki is ready to tear her hair out! I’m just trying to find my feet again. We’re in the process of replacing Division Two.”

“I was sorry to hear about that. Public Safety has lost a lot of Inspectors in the past few years.”

Akane could only nod. It was becoming more and more difficult to replace them.

Maybe it was because she had been in isolation for so long, but even the car trip felt novel. They crawled through traffic in the densest parts of the city and Akane watched as different coloured blobs hurried along the pavement. Bright storefronts advertised the latest trends, while the latest public safety announcement echoed through the streets.

They finally pulled up to a large building complex near the sea front. Rain continued to hammer the sides of buildings and Akane resigned herself to spending the day indoors.

Although the outside was fairly drab, the inside was full of shops and places for the public to entertain themselves. They walked past holo-salespeople offering samples of their products to anyone who approached, and beautifully decorated shopfronts inviting people inside to escape reality. Akane occasionally enjoyed commu-fields, but she shivered at the idea of trapping herself in a world where everything was artificial, even the people. Then again, her old classmate’s death had made virtual reality far less palatable in general. Holos and AI painted over the ugliness that still existed in their society.

“I don’t think you can blame people for wanting to avoid stress if given the option.”

“Doesn’t that make us complacent?” Akane wasn’t sure how to feel about them.

“I suppose it discourages personal growth,” Ginoza replied as he continued to stare ahead with a smile that reminded her painfully of Masaoka. “But we already ask the Sybil System to make decisions for us that are supposed to optimise our lives. How is it any different?”

“Is the Sybil System really the best way to achieve happiness?”

“I’m probably not the right person to ask.”

They shared a knowing look. After all, they both understood the System very differently from the average civilian. They knew its flaws and yet understood its necessity for society to continue functioning.

“Is there really no better way?”

Ginoza shrugged. “We interact with the worst of society. I don’t think we’re the best judges of its happiness.”

“Maybe.”

Suddenly, Ginoza stopped and Akane read the nearby sign. Their destination was the aquarium. While she tried to puzzle his choice of location, Ginoza paid for their tickets. Soon they were both entering the first dimly lit room.

The lighting made her feel as if she was underwater. Akane flinched at movement from the corner of her eye and found herself nearly touching Ginoza’s arm as a holo-shark prowled around them, scaring colourful fish in all directions. It was beautiful, but Akane couldn’t hide her disappointment. She had been locked away in a small room with only holos and the occasional visitor to entertain her. While impressive, her VR headset, which she had come to rely on at times during her isolation, could do better.

However, Ginoza didn’t seem put off by her reaction and led her into the next room. The lighting was a little brighter and their narrow pathway, barely wide enough for them to walk abreast, carved through glass tanks. With no holos darting around them, Akane peered into the glass and noticed with a start that there were small fish hiding amongst colourful coral. Even as she watched them, some refused to move and others shrunk back when they noticed another fish getting too close.

“They’re real,” she observed, not quite trusting her eyes.

In the reflected glass she caught Ginoza’s smile.

“They keep marine animals that can no longer survive in the wild in order to prevent them from becoming extinct. It mostly functions as a research centre, but they still let the public visit sometimes like the old days,” he explained as he bent down so that he was eyelevel with a small clownfish poking its head from an anemone.

There were so few visitors that they took their time staring into the different tanks and identifying fish and other marine animals from information panels that changed depending on what was viewable. Akane found herself sympathising with the creatures as they manoeuvred around their tiny worlds. She was still adjusting to her larger cage.

“It’s amazing to think sea beds used to be so colourful.” Akane had remembered studying the great coral bleaching events of the 21st century and suddenly felt a sense of loss.

The narrow path finally opened up to a huge domed room with a large cylindrical tank in the middle, that almost looked like it was solely holding up the ceiling. While Akane marvelled at the sheer size of the structure, Ginoza gently led her closer. The tank seemed to lack the colourful corals of the previous room, however Akane found her attention pulled to something that gradually floated into the path of one of the spotlights.

“Your AI was modelled on a jellyfish, wasn’t it?”

Akane found herself unable to speak as countless jellyfish moved around the tank in front of her, their tentacles catching the light as they moved. She had always found them to be such strange and interesting creatures, but had only seen holos before. The movements of these ones were less purposeful – they weren’t created to entertain – and somehow that made Akane even more fascinated.

“They’re incredible,” she said, her voice barely more than a whisper for fear she’d disturb them, despite the thick glass between.

Ginoza brushed close to her and Akane felt herself relax for what was possibly the first time in years. She leaned her head on his shoulder as she watched the jellyfish, losing herself in the way they seemed to peacefully float around, casually waiting for something to happen. Ginoza’s warm breath displaced some of the loose strands of hair that stuck up on the top of her head. 

“Thank you.”

Akane wasn’t sure how long she stood lost in thought, but eventually they moved onto other exhibits. They were quiet as they gradually made their way back to the entrance. Ginoza, quick to catch onto her contemplative mood, remained a mostly silent companion, only engaging in conversation when prompted.

They agreed to get food when they left, but Akane found herself stopping before they could even enter the food hall. Where the complex had been virtually empty when they arrived, now it was teeming with people. Akane stood frozen in place. The MWPSB’s recreation room was the largest crowd she had interacted with in years, but that had contained no more than a dozen people at a time. Everyone here was too close together. Someone knocked into Ginoza on his way past and Akane jolted back, much to her embarrassment.

A gentle hand at her elbow was all that was needed for Ginoza to lead her away. Internally Akane berated herself. Since when had she _ever_ been nervous of crowds? She tried to think back to the VR worlds she explored during her isolation, only to realise she rarely populated them with people. She hadn’t liked the fake interactions they forced upon her. They had only made her lonelier.

Water sprayed her legs, pulling her back into the present. They were standing just inside overlooking a small rooftop garden with a small pagoda in the middle. Ginoza put the umbrella into her hand.

“Why don’t you go and sit down? I’ll bring us some food.”

“You’ll get soaked.”

He touched the collar of his coat. “It’s waterproof. Besides,” he nodded to the pagoda, “the distance isn’t far.”

Akane was still soaked below her knees by the time she reached the shelter. Glad for wearing tights, she stripped them off, wrung them out, and laid them on part of the bench in in the hope they might dry a little. Rain bounced off the roof, the rhythm gradually settling her again. Without the worry of the crowds (no one else was foolish enough to sit in a garden during a summer downpour), Akane leaned against one of the pagoda’s supporting posts so that she had a view of the city. The lights and buildings were misty and washed out, but it seemed fitting given her current mindset. Tentatively, she reached out a hand, feeling the warm rain as it hit her palm. The water quickly pooled in the middle and overflowed, spilling out between her fingers. The VR systems were becoming more advanced with each generation, but smell and touch could still be hit-and-miss. Water was one of the trickier things to recreate.

Hurried steps behind her and Akane turned just as Ginoza reached the pagoda, water running down his face from his hair and a plastic bag in one hand. He removed his coat and placed it to dry before offering his jacket. It was only then that Akane realised she was shivering. She took a seat on his right side and pulled the jacket around her as Ginoza set the food between them. Akane felt her stomach growl as she smelled the freshly cooked noodles even through their packaging.

“Hungry,” he asked unnecessarily as he wrung out his ponytail.

Some drops still landed on his shirt and he shivered.

“Do you want your jacket back?”

“It’s fine,” he replied, trying not to grimace.

He unpacked the food and handed Akane her share. She carefully removed the lid and barely remembered to thank him for the meal before she dug in, slurping up the noodles greedily. In the silence, she glanced at him for a moment, only to catch his eye. They both quickly turned their attention back to eating. Akane’s stomach did a small flip. She silently chastised herself for gulping her food down too quickly, ignoring the heat in her cheeks.

Akane brought the bowl to her lips to carefully sip the broth, when something caught her attention in the corner of her eye. Clasping the still warm bowl, she watched the city for any sign of trouble. Just as she convinced herself it was her own paranoia, a rumble shook through the garden. The holo plants, which had been struggling in the torrential rain, flickered out.

“A blackout?” Ginoza sat poised, ready for trouble.

The lights in one section of the city had disappeared in an area that snaked towards them. Suddenly, another flash of lightning lit up the sky. She carefully placed her empty bowl on the ground as she counted.

One…Two…Three…

She reached nine before the next rumble of thunder reached them. The lights began to flicker on again in the distance.

“Three kilometres away.”

Ginoza’s breath came out in a laugh, tickling the back of her neck. Akane swallowed.

“My mother used to count the time between as well. I thought it was silly when the System’s calculation was so much more accurate.”

Akane tried to imagine a young Ginoza with glasses perched on his nose, scoffing at the old way of doing things. Without thinking too much, she reached back for his hand. It was warm against hers. Ginoza let her guide his arm around her without any resistance.

Another lightning flash in the distance and Akane shifted her weight to lean back against him, but was stopped when he gently pushed against his shoulder blade with his prosthetic hand. Akane flinched just as the next echoing rumble reached them. Had she overstepped their invisible line of professionalism? Her chest ached as she felt Ginoza shift behind her, still holding her in place.

The apology was ready on her lips, but instead came out as a gasp as he gently pulled her towards him with his arm. It was only then she realised he’d moved one of his legs in order to straddle the bench, making himself more comfortable. Her back touched his chest. Akane craned her head around to look at him properly, propped up against one of the pagoda’s posts. His smile was apologetic and for one terrifying moment all she could think of was closing the distance between their lips. However, Akane dragged her attention back to the view over the city and relaxed against him, holding his arms in place. She released a shaky breath.

Lightning continued to dance through the clouds, occasionally striking one of the taller city buildings. Akane relaxed further into Ginoza’s arms, tucking her head easily under his chin as they listened to the natural symphony. Her thumbs drew meandering circles from his hands to his wrists, feeling the difference between leather, metal and flesh.

“When do you need to return?”

“I finished my shifts this morning, so I’m not back in for another day.”

“Aren’t you tired?”

She hadn’t been until… “A little,” she admitted.

There was a long pause. “I’m glad you liked the jellyfish.”

She squeezed his living hand with one of hers.

Ginoza shifted his weight a little and Akane slowly turned her head to look at his face. Their warm breath mixed together as Akane took one hand and threaded it through his hair between his ponytail and scalp. She wasn’t sure who leaned in first, but she squeezed his hand tighter as their lips met, only parting again when her back started to ache.

Akane slowly disentangled her fingers from his hair, not quite sure what had come over her. Yet, she didn’t regret her actions. Ginoza’s artificial thumb gently traced around her lips, leather wiping away saliva. Their right hands were still intertwined.

“I could return to Public Safety…”

Akane cut him off with a shake of her head. “Even with Director Homura in charge, it’s still not safe. Besides,” she added with a mischievous smile to hide her nervousness, “there’s nothing wrong with two people from different departments being in a relationship.”

Ginoza stared at her intently, his voice only a whisper. “Is that what you want?”

There were butterflies in her stomach as Akane realised the weight behind his words. She nodded, mutely. He hugged her tightly, his head dropping onto her shoulder. She could feel him shiver against her, yet there were no goosebumps visible on his exposed skin.

“Maybe you should sleep on it. I won’t be back for a few weeks anyway.”

Akane pulled away enough to draw his eyes back to her. 

“All right,” she replied, making it clear she was indulging him.

He rested his chin on her shoulder. Both watched the city as the rain started to ease a little. And Akane knew her answer would be the same even in a few weeks’ time.


End file.
